In an unprecedented burst of rhetorical campaign fireballs, the executive governor of Oyo state, Seyi Makinde, disgraced former minister of power chief Bayo Adelabu in front of his numerous supporters who defected to the Allied Peoples Movement (APM).
Engineer Makinde, the APM presidential candidate, fired the first salvo by reminding president Bola Tinubu that if he had produced the electricity he promised Nigerians four years ago, he would not need to power streetlights with generators.
You will recall that president Tinubu appointed Adelabu as Nigeria’s federal minister of power in August 2023.
He held the position for over three years without significant improvement in power supply to the homes of Nigerians generally.
His time in office witnessed the most grid collapses in the history of power generation in Nigeria.
There could be no better time than this for a versatile politician and APM presidential candidate, Makinde, to remind Adelabu’s supporters and acclaimed former aides that APM is a disciplined party with a strong commitment to delivering its campaign promises by selecting capable Nigerians who have track records of excellent performance in office.
He passed the message, and right-thinking Nigerians know who was the power minister when Nigerians were buying diesel to power their generators.
There were two popular musicians in the early nineties called Alhaji Tatalo Alamu and Alhaji Agbomojo.
They were very popular, and one of the songs on one of their albums followed this narrative: “Eyin lelu funwon, won tun korin buyin.” (He was reacting to his opponent then: “You are the one leading the band’s drummers, but your lead vocalist sang to abuse you.”)
Everyone in Ibadan knows it is just a way to get back at Ibiyemi when you call Ibiyemi’s dog half-blind.
Governor Makinde has delivered his message, and Nigerians understand him well. We all wish him success in his bid to become the number one citizen of this country.
Ibi te soro de, oye wa ju be lo.
May God not allow our political ambitions to die a premature death like “ENIAWI”.
Ire ooo.
Mogaji Wole Arisekola writes from Ibadan.
Comments